Idag er vi på vei mot Bagn, adminstrasjonssenteret i Sør-Aurdal med sideveier til fjellbygda Reinli og til Etnedal. Dette bildet er tatt innover i Nor-Aurdal kommune, men fra grensen til Sør-Aurdal.Today we are enroute to Bagn, the administration center in the community of South Aurdal and with side roads to the mountain settlement ‘Reinli’ as well as to ‘Etnedal’.
This picture show parts of North Aurdal but have been taken on the very boarderline to South Aurdal.Vi er ikke helt fremme ennå, og fortsatt ganske høyt i terrenget, men ganske snart nå . . .
We’re not quite there yet, but still pretty high up in the hill side, but very soon now . . .

First stop is by ‘Fossen Kro’, but the water level in the river is pretty low this time of the year. At the same time it gives us an opportunity to observe how the river over time has cut through the solid rocks in the river bed. Please observe the potholes in the rocks to your left!Jeg tok dette bildet fra broen over elva fordi det illustrerer den lave vannføringen i ‘Begna’ for tiden, men kan samtidig gi et lite inntrykk av hvordan Bagn ligger i terrenget?

I took this picture from the bridge crossing the river beacuse it illustrates the very low water level this time of the year. At the same time it may give you an idea how Bagn nestles between th hills in the area.Litt nede i veien passerer vi bedehuset i Bagn. Ikke særlig stort, men så bor det heller ikke særlig mange mennesker i Bagn, – bare 586 innbyggere!

A bit down the road we are passing the local ‘house of worship’ in Bagn. As you may see: Not very large, but then there isn’t all that many people living in Bagn, – only 586 people.

Next to the ‘House of worship’ we find the municipal administration center (or ‘City Hall, if you will). This building is also rather small, but in spite of the land area of the community, being well beyound that of North Aurdal, the total population in South Aurdal is only 3145 people, – less than half what’s living in North Aurdal!

By the end of the road, and in connection with the throughway, we find ‘ Valdrestunet‘ which is the local shopping center and the local gasoline station.I dette forretningsbygget finner vi flere bedrifter, deriblandt den lokale avdeling av Nordea Bank.

In this commercial building there are several businesses, including the local branch of Nordea Bank.Like bak ‘Valdrestunet’ ligger et bygg med moderne leiligheter.
Just back of ‘Valdrestunet’ you’ll find a modern apartment building.Også her er vannføringen elendig, men det er godt med fisk i elva! Her glir elva forbi kommunens såkalte ‘1000-årssted’, en gammel ekserserplass som benyttes ved spesielle feiringer.

Also in this spot the water level of the river is less than good, but surprisingly it’s plenty of trouts in the river! Here the river ‘Begna’ glides passed the so called ‘thousand year spot’ in the community, an old military exercise ground used for special festive arrangements.Her nede ved ‘1000 års stedet’ i kommunen finner vi den del monumenter, b l.a. en støtte til minne om presten Hans Jacob Stabel (1769), født på Onsøy, men som over lang tid fungerte som sokneprest i Sør-Aurdal. Han var dessuten medlem av Riksforsamlingen på Eidsvoll som i 1814 sikret Norge sin suverenitet og egen Grunnlov.

Here down by the ‘thousand year spot’ of this community, we find a number of memorials. Among them a pillar in honor of the priest Hans Jacob Stabel (1769) born in Onsøy, but who spent a long time as a pastor in the community of South Aurdal. He was also a member of the National Assembly at Eidsvoll which in 1814 secured Norway its independence and its own constitution.

Bagn church is located in idyllic surroundings down by the river ‘Begna’ and close to the municipal ‘thousand year spot’. The church was erected back in 1736!Jeg følger på med noen panorama bilder fra Bagn som kan gi dere et inntrykk av bosetningen her i området –

I’m following up with a few panorama shots intended to give you an impression of how people live in this region of NorwayHer er et utsnitt fra vestsiden av dalen –
Here a section of the western side of the valley

Here is a photo I took half way up the hillside. Just about in the center of the picture you may see the shopping center: ‘Valdrestunet’, and the green meadows high up into the mopuntain sidess are the mountain settlement ‘Reinli’ where I’ll take you later some time.
It may be a bit akward to see Bagn church from here, but if yhou are looking closely, you may see its spire in between the two tall trees slightly to the left of the center of the picture.Og til slutt et bilde mer i dalens lengderetning hvor dere også får et godt inntrykk av elven som nå plutselig ser mer normal ut🙂 På dette bildet tror jeg nærmest jeg har fått med meg ‘hele Bagn’ . . .

And at long last a picture taken more lengthwise and where you may get a good impression of the river ‘Begna’ which suddenly look a bit more normal🙂
In this picture I think I may have gotten most ‘all of Bagn’!
(Compliments of SRB )